


Star Trek: Finding Neverland

by gahye0nie



Category: (여자)아이들 | (G)I-DLE, CLC (Band), Dreamcatcher (Korea Band), Star Trek
Genre: Alien Cultural Differences, Aliens, Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Alternate Universe - Space, F/F, Lesbians in Space, its space lesbians saving the galaxy whats not to love!, u dont need to know star trek to understand this story though
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:22:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27565234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gahye0nie/pseuds/gahye0nie
Summary: These are the adventures of Jeon Soyeon, the youngest Starfleet captain in history, and her faithful crew hailing from dozens of planets across the galaxy, all on the USS Neverland. It might be Soyeon's first time commanding an entire crew, but she may be forced to prove herself when the Neverland encounters a threat that may have the entire galaxy, or perhaps the entire known universe, at risk of destruction.
Relationships: Jeon Soyeon & Kwon Eunbin, Jeon Soyeon/Song Yuqi, Lee Gahyeon/Lee Yubin | Dami, Seo Soojin/Yeh Shuhua, Song Yuqi/Minnie Nicha Yontararak, minor Elkie/Yeeun and Yujin/Seungyeon, minor Jiu/Sua and Siyeon/Handong
Comments: 5
Kudos: 32





	1. Captain Jeon Soyeon

**Author's Note:**

> I've had this fic idea in my head for a while! Over the past few months I've been watching various Star Trek series with my family, so I decided to write a crossover fic about it. Don't worry, you wont need to know a lot about Star Trek, or have even watched the series before, to understand what's going on. Star Trek is meant to be pretty accessible as far as science fiction goes and you don't really have to actually understand the technobabble (although i'll try to keep it to a minimum). I'll also try to explain any part of ST lore when needed (I might put in some easter eggs/references for any Trekkies, though!)
> 
> Here is a thread of the character designs for this series as well for anyone who is curious! https://twitter.com/gahye0nie/status/1303530892992933889

_ First Officer’s personal log, Stardate 48797.01.  _

_ The USS  _ Muzik _ has arrived at Omicron II Station. We’re stopping for repairs and refueling, but once that’s all done...I’ll be leaving this ship for good. The reason for that? Well...today… _

Soyeon giggled, her slippered feet kicking over the side of her bed in pure, unadulterated joy. The computer by her bedside beeped loudly, almost angrily, jolting her more awake than she already was. She straightened her back and cleared her throat, her voice lowering to a more professional timbre. “Computer, resume log recording.”

_...Today is the day I officially become  _ Captain _ Jeon Soyeon. Got a nice ring to it, huh? I’m going to be stationed on a new ship, my own ship, at 9:00 hours. Now it would have been nice if Starfleet had  _ told _ me where this ship was going to be but...ah, it’ll be okay. I’m supposed to be meeting an admiral at the dock, so I assume they’ll tell me where to go.  _

Soyeon chuckled, thinking about the prospect of the situation.

_ Gonna be the last time for a while I’ll have someone telling me what to do, I hope. Jeon Soyeon out. _

Soyeon shut the computer off once she was sure her log was in the system and hurried to the bathroom, her uniform in the crook of her arm. Facing the holographic mirror, she studied her own reflection for a moment. Her black bob was messy from sleep, her face bare. She frowned. Soyeon tried to focus on brushing her teeth instead. It was often difficult for her not to fixate on her reflection at times, little flecks of memories of how she was teased in her childhood, how her nose ridges, while typical for a Bajoran, were just a little bit more prominent than the other childrens’. She stared at the bottom of her mirror screen instead, photographs in slideshow view scrolling slowly past. One of them was a slightly grainy picture, a little Bajoran girl with very distinct nose ridges, maybe about five or six, with a beautiful older Bajoran woman.

The little girl was practically a spitting image. Soyeon smiled, albeit a forlorn one. Realizing it was close to 8:30, Soyeon cursed under her breath. She shook her head, focusing on brushing her unruly hair. 

Of all the days it had to be such, of course it had to be today. 

* * *

Soyeon straightened her collar as she ran out of her quarters. She almost ran straight into a couple ensigns, practically leaping out of the First Officer’s way. She quickly apologized, formalities forgotten by both parties as Soyeon made her way down the hallway. She hopped into the turbolift, giving a slightly-too-loud sigh of exhaustion before shouting out the number of the floor for the lift to go to. She knew it was too loud once she heard a voice clear next to her, and her cheeks grew hot in embarrassment.

“You’re certainly in a hurry this morning, Commander.”

Soyeon looked up and took another sigh of relief when she recognized the person on board the turbolift with her, Ensign Kwon Eunbin. 

“Oh! Binnie! Good morning! Well, I have a good reason to be, don’t I?”

The tall half-Vulcan pressed a curled-up hand to her mouth in thought. “Oh, that’s right. I had almost forgotten.”

She pulled out a small, plastic container from under her arm, presenting it to Soyeon. Inside, a frosted pink cupcake with an unlit candle.

“Happy birthday.”

Soyeon laughed. “Eunbin, thank you...I-I actually totally forgot it was my birthday too, oh my god…”

Eunbin cocked her head to the side, a small tilt that almost reminded Soyeon of an android. “Birthdays in many cultures are events of celebration. It seems illogical to forget such an occasion.”

“Well, unlike you I’m not so logical all the time.”

Eunbin raised her eyebrows. “I can tell.”

Soyeon nudged her friend playfully, and while the gesture wasn’t shown, Soyeon knew that beneath Eunbin’s Vulcan sternness, she was smiling back. Over the two years she had been stationed aboard the  _ Muzik _ , she had developed a surprisingly close relationship with Eunbin. Soyeon, beneath her talent as a starship officer and her bravery, her knowledge, she was actually somewhat shy, even awkward at times. It was nice to be around someone who would be honest with her and perhaps, underneath it all, also struggle with social graces.

“Ah it’s just so crazy...I’m going to be  _ Captain  _ Jeon Soyeon...can you believe it?”

“I must say, I am impressed. You have matured greatly from our time together.”

The Bajoran smiled as the two of them exited the turbolift. “I’m going to miss you, y’know.”

“I appreciate the sentiment, Commander,” Eunbin said with a bow of her head, walking close next to Soyeon. “However, I will not need to say goodbye to you.”

Soyeon frowned. “What are you talking about?”

“The captain must have neglected to tell you that we would  _ both _ be stationed on your starship...” 

Eunbin walked ahead of Soyeon, who was frozen in place in the hallway, her short legs in a wide stance. “Wait, what!?”

She ran ahead to keep up with Eunbin’s straight-legged power walk to the bridge, who was still as calm as ever watching her friend have a near mental-breakdown in front of a few amused officers.

And the captain of the ship.

“Number One, did someone give you an extra coffee this morning?” Captain Kim Hyuna asked, turning her captain’s chair to the side.

“N-No, I...you never told me that Ensign Kwon was being stationed with me?”

“Oh, darn...must have not told you that Admiral Ahn Hyojin was going to be there too.”

Soyeon blinked. “A-Admiral Ahn Hyojin?!”

Hyuna giggled into her hand. “Gosh, I really should have told you sooner if I’d known you’d have a conniption on my bridge.” 

Soyeon looked around, seeing that she was getting a couple stares from a couple of lieutenants, then sat into her own chair, next to the captain. She sighed in nostalgic melancholy, knowing that this chair wouldn’t be hers anymore. 

“I’m really going to miss this good old ship.”

“She’s really been through a lot...no wonder you wanted to get off this hunk of junk so soon,” Hyuna joked.

“But really...thank you so much for this...opportunity. Your good reports on me got me this promotion in the first place,” Soyeon said.

“Maybe I was a little generous, but you’ve really done a good job. But I’ll give you a little advice, ok, kid?”

Soyeon nodded.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself. Your instincts have gotten us all out of tough situations. Trust them. Your gut knows more than you think it does.”

The younger woman nodded. “Yeah...you’re right. I’ll keep that in mind.”

The captain’s eyes followed one of the other commanders on the bridge, a shaggy-haired man who gave her a warm, loving smile.

“Commander Kim Hyojong is going to be your Number One when I go?”

“I’m too predictable, aren’t I?” Hyuna replied with a girlish twirl of her hair.

“Isn’t the crew going to suspect nepotism?” Soyeon said with a small laugh.

Hyuna gestured to the young man. “You’ve seen him on the bridge. He’s just as capable as you were. And I  _ won’t _ be going soft on him just because he’s my fiancé. Isn’t that right?”

She called out to Hyojong, who had been staring at the captain in a lovestruck gaze. “H-huh? Oh, that’s correct, ma’am.”

Hyuna gave him a wily smirk.

* * *

“Commander Jeon, please stand still or I won’t be able to get a lock on you.”

“Ah, r-right...sorry,” Soyeon curtly apologized to the disgruntled Klingon transporter worker, allowing him to do his job.

He energized the transporter, his fingers working the controls, with Eunbin and Soyeon on the pad, the matter of bodies disappearing from the ship. Within seconds, they beamed onto the dock of the space station, Soyeon resuming her rant to Eunbin.

“But really, why wouldn’t the captain tell me that  _ Admiral Ahn _ was going to be the one assigning me to my  _ very first ship… _ ”

“I suppose that she wanted to surprise you. It is your birthday, after all.”

“I would have gotten up a lot earlier if I knew that she was going to be there...I don’t have anything in my teeth, do I?”

“Oh, there she is,” Eunbin commented casually.

Soyeon stood as straight as a board when the Admiral approached them. Seeing this, she laughed softly, slightly hoarse, her uniform coat slightly unbuttoned. 

“At ease, Commander,” she called as she walked up to them. She stood in front of Soyeon, letting her relax her body before she held out a tiny box to Soyeon. Inside was a round, golden pin, a mark of her new rank.

“Or should I say, Captain,” Hyojin corrected herself. “Congratulations, Jeon Soyeon.”

“I-It really is an honor…” Soyeon stammered.

Hyojin smiled. “You’re starting to remind me more of that cadet I taught at the Academy right now. Relax, I’m not going to bite either of you.”

“I would prefer not to express any informalities, if that is alright with you, Admiral,” Eunbin asked, her voice quiet, almost sounding meek, if she was expressing her emotions outwardly.

“Not a problem, Ensign,” Hyojin replied, giving a small, subtle nod and a laugh.

Soyeon laughed along with her. Despite her worries beforehand, whenever she spoke with the Admiral in person, it always made her feel more at home. She was certainly more at ease than if she had been given assignment from one of those old, stuffy Admirals that would give her the evil eye when she was late to classes. She opened up the box and attached the new pin to her collar, four golden buttons now attached. Even though the addition of a pin was purely symbolic, Soyeon felt more confident already, Hyuna’s praise from earlier bolstering her mood.

“I should show you to your ship now,” Hyojin said, “Right this way.”

Soyeon and Eunbin followed close behind the Admiral, gazing up at the ships in the hangar, Soyeon eagerly awaiting when they would stop. Any of these beautiful new ships could be hers.

“And here we are,” the Admiral said. 

They stopped in front of a Nebula-class starship. It was the same shape as most explorer-type ships were, a saucer-shaped upper hull with a second lower hull that housed the two powerful warp nacelles that would power its flight. On the underside was its registry number: NCC-65118. Soyeon had stood in front of starships before, of course, they were hundreds of meters long and capable of carrying hundreds of passengers. But being in the physical presence of this ship felt even more awe-inspiring.

“Wow...it’s beautiful.”

“Capable of warp 9 acceleration, 8 phaser arrays, 2 torpedo launchers...it’s a standard ship for its class, Captain,” Eunbin commented, visually assessing the ship with her holo-phone in one hand.

“It’s no  _ Enterprise _ , but the USS  _ Neverland _ ’s been there for my crew for ten years, Ensign Kwon. She’s not just any old ship,” Hyojin said wistfully, “And now...she’s all yours, Soyeon.”

“The  _ Neverland… _ ” Soyeon repeated softly, eyes wide, taking in the view, “I-I’ll make sure to take good care of her, Admiral.”

Ahn Hyojin checked her own phone, seeing a notification appear in front of her on its holographic screen. “Commander Song Yuqi is beaming down to give you two the tour before the new recruits get here. I’ll leave her to it. Good luck, captain.”

With an earnest smile, the Admiral walked away, Soyeon watching her join her fellow admirals on the deck. The Bajoran sighed.

“I’m going to need it.”


	2. Four to Beam Up

Within a few moments, two figures beamed down from the ship. The first was a commander, red-shirted with a wide grin on her face. She was mostly human in appearance, but had some features that were noticeably unusual. Her ears were a little higher up on her head, the outer lobe slightly irregular in shape and pointed at the ends. Her face was outlined in a spotted pattern, similar to a leopard, mostly concentrated on her forehead, cheeks, and neck, and a faint ridge ran down the bridge of her nose that was almost unnoticeable until she came closer. Her hair was a medium brown, slightly curly and tied in a low ponytail that rested on her shoulder. The other officer with her, yellow-shirted, was an Andorian, her skin an icy blue to match her cold expression. She had platinum blonde hair in a neat, straight bob, and from her head sprouted two antennae. She would have been a stereotypical Andorian if not for her surprisingly soft features, looking years younger than what she probably was. 

The commander approached Soyeon with a firm handshake. “Commander Song Yuqi...it’s a pleasure to meet you! You must be Captain Jeon.”

“That I am,” Soyeon replied, smiling back, “It’s a pleasure as well.”

“I guess I’m going to be your, uh, Number One, huh?” Yuqi said with a warm-hearted elbow to Soyeon’s side. Soyeon chuckled, a little taken aback by the commander’s very casual greeting. Yuqi noticed Soyeon’s expression, taking a small step back, “I-I mean, your first officer.”

“Yes, of course,” she replied, “No worries, Commander.”

Despite it being unexpected, Soyeon wasn’t particularly bothered by it. It made her feel a little less nervous, in fact.

“This is Lieutenant Commander Jang Yeeun, my Chief of Security. She’ll be taking you, Ensign, to the Medbay once the other Ensigns arrive for medical examinations.”

Eunbin nodded, looking at Yeeun. Yeeun cleared her throat.

“Oh, come on now, don’t be shy, you two!” Yuqi said to Yeeun. “Socialize!”

“Commander, that’s hardly appropriate. As Chief of Security…” Yeeun spoke up, her voice as soft as her exterior.

“And as your superior, I demand you pass the time with your new officer while I give our new Captain a tour!”

“Right, ma’am…”

Yuqi tapped the badge on her chest. “Transporter, four to beam up.”

The four officers were now in the transporter room. The transporter operator, a human, nodded her head in respect as the captain entered the room. Soyeon marvelled at the architecture of the state-of-the-art transporter, giving it a good look-over. 

“I can’t believe it. You’ve retrofitted the latest transporters into a ten year old ship?”

“Actually, the _Neverland_ is fifteen. Admiral Lee Chaerin had her before Admiral Ahn did,” Yuqi commented, leading Soyeon down the hallway to the lift. The whole inside of the ship appeared to be modified as well, sporting a decidedly modern, shiny design.

“Admiral Lee Chaerin?” Soyeon said, her voice hushed in awe, “That’s incredible...oh wow...the whole ship looks fantastic on the inside…”

“It’s all thanks to our engineering team, they’ve practically performed miracles on this old girl.”

The two boarded the turbolift, Yuqi sending them down to the Engineering Department. Soyeon twiddled her thumbs next to Yuqi in silence. Her eyes wandered, looking at the floor of the lift, at her shoes, and then to Yuqi. She traced over Yuqi’s face, down the curve of her nose.

“You’re wondering what exactly you’re looking at, right?” 

Soyeon blinked out of her daze when she heard the Commander’s low voice. “Huh?”

“You know...the old ‘so what are you?’ question.”

“No, I wouldn’t! That would be rude. Trust me, I’ve met many different people in my life at Starfleet.”

“But you’ve never met someone like me, have you?”

Soyeon nodded. “Well...yes, I guess you’re right.”

“It’s alright. I’ve gotten it a lot. Trill is usually their first guess, the spots and all, but then the ears make them lose the plot a little. I always just tell them my dad got freaky with a Tribble and call it a day.”

Soyeon chuckled. “Is that the real answer?”

“Of course not. The real answer is none of your business.”

“It’s the answer I’d give, too,” Soyeon said sagely. “It’s personal to you, nobody needs to know.”

“I’ve only told a few people on this ship. Maybe one day _you’ll_ find out.”

Soyeon nodded again, her eyes now catching a faint, smudged lipstick mark on Yuqi’s neck, just above her collar, that she didn’t notice before. She smirked, a gesture Yuqi didn’t see as they entered Engineering. 

The Engineering room was quite robust for a ship the size of the _Neverland_ , dozens of control stations each manned by three or four officers. The warp core, the engine of the ship, stood in the center of the room, the dilithium that powered the reaction glowing a bright blue. There was a human standing in front of the warp core punching buttons. She turned to another woman, the other almost bouncing to her beckon call.

“Lieutenant Cho, can you run a level four diagnostic on the matter-antimatter injectors? We’re going to be heading out in a couple hours and…”

The engineer turned around and her eyes went somewhat wide. “Oh! Are you...the new captain?”

“Captain Jeon Soyeon,” Soyeon said, giving a small nod of her head and a curt handshake.

“Lieutenant Commander Sorn Sajakul...everyone just calls me Sorn, though...I’d at least like people to call me _Commander_ before that, but...ah, nevermind, it’s great to meet you.”

“So you’re the one who’s in charge of all the remodeling around here.”

“Ah, thank you! It took a lot of hard work, but it was worth it, y’know? We really needed an update around here.”

Soyeon nodded. “This department’s bigger than the one on my old ship.”

“Oh, it’s going to get bigger, there’s a lot of new recruits coming down here, I’m looking forward to it,” Sorn said, smiling.

* * *

Eunbin stood in line with the other Ensigns in front of the Medbay. Her eyes were fixed on the back of someone’s head in front of her. It didn’t really bother her to wait. It wasn’t like she had anything else to do. She was interrupted by a small tap on her shoulder from behind. She whirled around and saw the wide eyes of a pink-skinned girl with long, black hair. She had twin tentacles sprouting from the sides of her head, spotted with a darker pink, the first thing Eunbin noticed about her. The second was that her legs were shaking.

“Hey, can you save my spot?”

“What?”

“I _really_ have to use the bathroom, can you save my spot in line...what’s your name?”

“Kwon Eunbin?” Eunbin replied, her brow furrowed.

“Okay! Thanks, Eunbin!” The other Ensign briefly tapped her tentacles to Eunbin’s cheeks, then ran off down the hallway. Eunbin blinked, touching her hands to her face where she had been unexpectedly touched. 

She was not familiar with this social ritual. 

In a few minutes the girl returned, sighing rather loudly in relief. There were a few cursory glances from the other officers in line as she did so. “Ahh, much better.”

Eunbin nodded to her, turning back around as the line moved up. 

“I-I’m Ensign Yeh Shuhua! I’m from Andaman III.”

“Kwon Eunbin. Earth.”

“Oh, that’s cool! I’ve never been to Earth...Back on my planet, we have a successful oyster business in my province but...wasn’t for me, yknow? I mean, I like oysters but fishing for them takes a lot of muscle. I’m not exactly a bodybuilder but...you can probably tell that. Engineering was always something I was better at anyways, so I figured Starfleet was the best thing for me! And well, here I am!”

“Very intriguing,” Eunbin replied curtly. She heard her name called by the chief medical officer and sat on the bench closest to the door. She was facing the line leading into the room, and when Shuhua entered the room after her, her face suddenly changed. Her eyes went wide and her jaw was slack open, the spotted markings on her tentacles turning from a dark pink to a bright red. 

“Hello, my name is Doctor Seo Soojin, I’ll be examining you today. Oh, Elkie, can you hand me a new tricorder? The battery ran out on this one,” the medical officer said to her assistant, tapping the tricorder to her palm.

“Right away, Doctor Seo.”

Doctor Seo gave Eunbin a warm smile, her lipstick red as cherries. She was certainly an attractive human woman, and based on Shuhua’s reaction, it seemed like she had noticed this as well. Maybe more so than Eunbin, however. But she could have been wrong. She did not know much about the inhabitants of Andaman III besides an apparently bustling shellfish industry.

“Ensign Kwon Eunbin...I hear you’re close with the new Captain.”

Eunbin nodded. She recognised the doctor was making small talk with her as she was examining her. “Yes, for two years we were on the same ship.”

“You two are friends?”

Eunbin pondered the label. “You could say that, yes.”

Doctor Seo smiled. “Alright, nothing unusual is coming up on your scan, vitals are normal...I think you’re free to go. Next in line!”

Shuhua’s spots changed color in response, turning an almost fluorescent red. “H-Hello!”

“Step forward, please,” the doctor asked.

Shuhua’s shaky legs came back, slowly approaching the bench, her eyes unwavering from the doctor, her jaw still slack. 

“You can sit down now,” Soojin said, a little more awkwardness seeping through.

Shuhua nodded wordlessly, a small unintelligible noise coming from her throat as she sat down, wobbling slightly. The doctor scanned her with the tricorder, but was met with an angry-sounding beep.

“Oh, that’s right. You’re a Sepiidite, correct?”

Shuhua nodded slowly, her voice rising in pitch. “Mmm-hm?”

“My apologies...we haven’t had a Sepiidite operating on our ships before. I just need to update the software, alright? It will only be a few minutes.”

Soojin’s hand brushed against Shuhua’s, surely by accident, because she withdrew it as fast as she placed it. Shuhua gasped, her spots blinking multiple colors a second, like ambulance lights.

Soojin frowned with concern. “Are you alright?”

Shuhua jumped, seeming to come back to Earth. Or well, the ship she was on. Her spots returned to their original pink color. “Y-yes ma’am! Perfectly fine. Totally!”

Soojin slowly turned back around to update her tricorder, Elkie with a knowing smirk on her face as she placed vials of samples into the specimen fridge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, now we're into some more major character introduction aboard the Neverland...and perhaps teasing some future ships (and i'm not just talking about starships, wink wink)? I have the feeling this fic I'll be able to update pretty frequently, I'm really enjoying writing this. So look forward to more updates!


	3. Captain on Deck

After leaving the turbolift for what felt like the thousandth time that morning, Yuqi waved Soyeon down a short hallway. There were about a dozen doorways on either side of the hallway, benches fit for two between every other door attached to the walls.

“Oh, are these ship’s quarters?” Soyeon asked.

“No, this is our counseling department. Admiral Ahn decided to expand the psychology department to even out the workload and keep everyone’s appointments from getting backed up. Really don’t know why other starships didn’t do it sooner.”

Soyeon blinked in pleased surprise. It certainly was reassuring to learn even more great things her mentor did for this ship. Although, as she toured the  _ Neverland _ , a ship that had passed through two capable pairs of hands before hers, it simultaneously worried her. She wondered if these shoes were too big for her to properly fill. She looked down, quite literally, at her shoes. She tried remembering what Hyuna had said to her before she left the ship, repeating her words in her head.

_ Don’t be so hard on yourself, don’t be so hard on yourself… _

“Captain?”

Soyeon blinked, looking up from the floor.

“Are you okay?” Yuqi asked, eyes lidded in concern.

“Yes, I am. It’s a good thing we are in the counseling department if I wasn’t, huh?” Soyeon mused.

One of the doors of the offices slid open, followed by a disembodied, feminine giggle.

“Bora, honey...you know I have t-to meet with the new captain any minute now, and I have an appointment in 30, and…”

A pair of flush-faced women practically toppled out of the office in each other’s arms, one a green-skinned Orion with light brown hair, the other appearing at least partially Napean, judging by her prominent forehead ridges, with black hair. Both of their uniforms were in various states of disarray, and the Napean woman seemed to be trying to zip up her partner’s uniform, but the zipper kept getting stuck. The Orion woman shushed the other’s playful complaints, her other hand clasped gently around her waist.

“Are you blushing? You’re so cute, Minjwi~” she sing-songed in a silly voice, pecking more kisses on the other woman’s cheek, earning her even more bubbly giggles. A passerby, someone else assumedly coming from their appointment, cleared his throat loudly as he tried to walk past the lovers taking up the whole hallway. They both froze in place, both giving each other a couple feet of distance and chuckling awkwardly. The blue-uniformed Napean looked up, her eyes wide in surprise as she noticed Soyeon and Yuqi standing before her.

“C-Commander, h-hello,” she said, smoothing out her tangled hair. “I wasn’t expecting you to bring the captain  _ down here _ …”

“I have to be familiar with all areas of the ship, don’t I?” said Soyeon. She almost laughed at the shell-shocked look the Napean had on her face. She was viewed by her previous crew with reverence, being second in line to the captain, but here it felt like she was some sort of celebrity around these people.

Minji politely shook hands with her new captain. “R-right! Hello, I’m Kim Minji, Assistant Counselor.”

“And I’m Lieutenant Kim Bora,” said the Orion, reaching out and shaking Soyeon’s hand right as Minji had finished, “But you could also call me the sexiest pilot this side of the galaxy.”

Minji giggled again. 

“Maybe, but the real question is are you any good?” Soyeon retorted, smirking.

Bora scoffed at the question. “Of course I am!”

“My lovely wife is actually very good at piloting our ship, sir,” Minji said, placing her hands on Bora’s shoulders, looking her in the eye, “I’m sure she won’t be any trouble to you, right?”

Soyeon gave a look, her striking eyes conveying enough sternness and clarity for Bora to straighten her expression and give her a curt nod in response. Unlike her wife, Bora was a spitfire from the moment Soyeon set eyes on her. She could tell that, despite defiance, they would get along.

“I hope you’ll be able to meet Commander Yontararak, but she’s on her lunch break right now, and--oh! Speak of the devil.”

A woman with dark hair and eyes approached from down the hallway, bowing shallowly before shaking hands with the captain.

“Oh, hello, captain! I’m sure you must be tired of shaking hands with everyone by now.”

“It’s alright, just a little clammy is all. You are the Head Counselor, right?”

She nodded. “Minnie Yontararak, but just call me Minnie, alright? I look forward to seeing you and making sure you’re always fit for duty.”

“Of course. I try to follow doctor’s orders.”

Minnie’s warm, gentle smile started to fade when she noticed Yuqi standing next to Soyeon. She eyed the side of Yuqi’s neck, the side that still faintly showed a lipstick mark. Yuqi averted her eyes.

“How are you doing today, Yuqi?” Minnie asked, too chipper to be nonchalant, but she was clearly trying to be. Her smile was still present, but this time it was almost a little  _ too  _ wide, almost vindictive. 

“I’m f-fine,” Yuqi said back, tone flat, trying to casually adjust her collar. 

“How is Yeoreum?”

The other officers were chuckling nervously, sharing the sentiment that Soyeon was feeling at the moment that  _ maybe  _ she didn’t really want to be here right now, stuck in the vicinity of some kind of dispute thickly laid in sexual tension. 

And she certainly didn’t want to be whoever this Yeoreum woman was.

“She’s fine too. Um…”

Minnie’s eyes opened a little wider in anticipation, enough for Soyeon to notice how pure black they were. If she were Yuqi right now, she’d probably be sweating buckets. 

All of the sudden, the voice of the Head of Security came over the loudspeakers. 

_ “Captain Jeon Soyeon, Commander Song Yuqi, and Lieutenant Kim Bora, please report to the bridge as soon as possible.” _

As the three officers went into the turbolift to the bridge, Soyeon shared a cursory glance with Yuqi. There was a pregnant pause.

“So, what was that all about?”

Yuqi rubbed the lipstick mark off of her neck. “It’s complicated…”

* * *

Soyeon and Yuqi stepped onto the bridge of the  _ Neverland,  _ the control center for navigation, weapons, and ship-to-ship communication. The captain’s chair, a luxurious black leather seat, was positioned in the center of the bridge, and surrounding it in a ring were multiple control stations, manned each by an officer or two. All of the officers on the bridge turned towards Soyeon and stood up straight, hands clasped behind their back, a standard sign of respect when senior officers were on the bridge. Bora was at her station to Soyeon’s right, she recognized her. There was another familiar face, too. On the opposite side of Bora’s station was navigation, manned by none other than Kwon Eunbin. The two exchanged a look of acknowledgement, Soyeon giving her old shipmate a gentle smile. The others on deck, however, she didn’t know. 

It took Soyeon a moment to find the words to introduce herself. She didn’t want to be too casual, but she also didn’t want to deathly intimidate the crew. Quietly, she stood beside the captain’s chair. She took a deep breath.

“Hello, my name is Jeon Soyeon...and I’m going to be your captain. Since you all are going to be my bridge crew, I want to know your names. I’ve already met the…”

Soyeon side-eyed Bora. “so-called ‘sexiest pilot in the galaxy’ over here…”

The rest of the bridge quietly chuckled, some even smiled. This was good, this was comfortable.

“But I want to get to know the rest of you. Let’s start with the Vulcan over here,” Soyeon said, giving Eunbin a smug look.

“Captain, I don’t believe I need to introduce myself to you...but for everyone else...hello, I’m Ensign Kwon Eunbin, previously serving on the USS  _ Muzik. _ ”

To Eunbin’s left was a slender human woman with long brown hair and bangs. “Ensign Kim Yoohyeon, communications.”

On her right, another human woman. “Lieutenant Lee Yeoreum, tactical systems.”

Yuqi lowered herself into the first officer’s chair, clearing her throat. Soyeon tried not to laugh at the palpable awkwardness between the two women. 

Yeeun was at her station in the back. “Jang Yeeun, Chief of Security...we’ve already met, haven’t we?”

“O-of course..of course. I promise, as your captain, to lead and serve you well, and guide this ship throughout our five-year mission...as well as remembering all your names. I might be, currently, the youngest Starfleet captain in history, but I won’t let you down.”

Soyeon lowered herself into the captain’s chair, letting the feeling sink in that she was, indeed, the captain of her ship, and that her adventure was just about to begin. Her inner child, the shy little Bajoran girl who always looked up at the stars and wondered what else was out there for her, made itself known in a little place inside her heart. But of course, she kept her exterior professional and calm. 

“Oh, Lieutenant Jang,” Soyeon said, beckoning over the Andorian woman.

“Yes?”

“You wanted Yuqi and I to be on the bridge as soon as possible, right?”

“We’re just about to leave the starbase, sir,” Yeeun replied. She brought up a tablet, projecting files on the viewscreen, a model of a planet and an informative blurb shown across the large front window of the bridge.

“We are setting course for Ruah II. It is a Class M planet with a warm, humid climate, and we have three Federation colonies in the southwestern continent. The planet has been rapidly cooling, and our scientists predicted that within three years the native wildlife will not be able to survive. We have been asked to go to Ruah II to supply them technology to control their climate. I believe…”

Yeeun skimmed through the files, stopping on an unintelligible signature.

“Yes, Lieutenant Lee Gahyeon will be briefing you on more details...she should be up here by now…”

Right after this, a science officer entered the bridge. Even next to the wide variety of alien races on the bridge, she stood out among the rest; pastel pink hair tied in a ponytail, long, pointed, furry ears on top of her head, and a long catlike tail swishing behind her. She even had whiskers sprouting from her cheeks. She had rolls of blueprints tucked under her arm that jostled as she briskly walked up to the captain with a grin.

“Hello, captain. Pleasure to meet you. Sorry I’m late, had to get some finishing touches on my drafts done…”

The cat-person sat criss-crossed on the floor in front of Soyeon, laying out her paper blueprints at her feet.

“G-Gahyeon, you know we have _ these _ for a reason, right?” Yeeun asked, pointing to the tablet in her hand, trying to avoid the rolls of paper strewn all over.

“Aaaaugh, it’s easier this way!” Gahyeon said, pouting. 

“It really isn’t. That’s why tablets were invented,” Eunbin piped up.

“Anyway,” Gahyeon said, seemingly ignoring the other two officers, “The mission on Ruah II requires us to build these nifty little weather controllers. I modified them to meet the specifications for the planet.”

“I see,” Soyeon replied, “We’ll need to send a team down to take measurements of the climate currently to double-check that these are correct before we deploy them above the atmosphere.”

Gahyeon’s tail curled. “I’ve got you covered, Captain. My wife and I will be in charge of that.”

Soyeon nodded.  _ Lots of married couples on this ship, huh? _

She glanced at Yuqi, who was still trying to avoid meeting eyes with Yeoreum as she walked past.

_ Well, married couples and some kind of friends-with-benefits situation. _

“Captain, we’re clear to launch,” Bora reported.

“Perfect. Set course for Ruah II, warp 6. Let’s get moving.”

* * *

As lunch time approached and shifts changed, Soyeon and Yuqi headed to the mess hall for a bite to eat. It would take a couple days at their current speed to reach the planet, so there was no need for either high-ranking officer to be on the bridge 24/7. The two approached two of the unoccupied food replicator stations.

“Korean-style ramen, no vegetables,” Soyeon said when the replicator prompted her. Yuqi turned her head towards her quizzically. 

“That’s just noodles, broth and an egg…”

“No, it’s got chicken too! And seasoning,” Soyeon retorted.

“You’re not even going to have onions in it?” 

“I said...I don’t want vegetables,” Soyeon told her, slowly, intently.

Yuqi pulled her steamy stir-fry out from under the replicator box. “What kind of captain doesn’t eat vegetables...how are you even alive?”

Soyeon cupped her bowl of noodles, broth and egg in her hands. “Yuqi, we live in a day and age where worldwide hunger and sickness are things from centuries ago. Plus, I’ve never had to go to medbay yet for it.”

Yuqi was about to retort when her attention turned to the front of the mess hall. 

Minnie and Minji were approaching them slowly, slowly enough that Yuqi and Minnie made eye contact in silence for maybe a little too long. But this time, there didn’t seem to be any anger or malice between them. Minnie’s gentle gaze seemed entirely sincere, enough that Soyeon could tell it caught Yuqi off-guard. Noticing the pause, Minji spoke up.

“Are you done with the replicators?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, go ahead,” Yuqi replied, almost in a daze. 

Once the two sat down at an empty table, Soyeon leaned in close to Yuqi.

“Alright, you’ve held me off long enough. What’s going on with you and the counselor?”

“Well…” Yuqi chuckled, “We...are not together...we’ve had um…”

She twiddled her fingers awkwardly. “Relations, you know. No strings….or maybe a couple strings...here and there…and then Yeoreum came along with a couple more strings and…”

Soyeon placed a finger on Yuqi’s lips. The first officer immediately shut up, a faint flush on her face.

“Forget I even asked.”

Yuqi chuckled. “What about you?”

“Hm?”

“Meet anyone interesting on your old ship?” 

Soyeon scoffed. “I never had time for any of that. I was always so busy…”

Yuqi’s eyes wandered across the hall. “What about her?”

Soyeon turned towards where Yuqi was subtly gesturing; Eunbin, sitting at a table with Yoohyeon and Yeoreum, idly staring at the two other officers while they engaged in animated conversation. 

The captain laughed, shoveling half an egg in her mouth. “Eunbin? No, she’s a great officer, but she’s just a good friend. Plus, it’s not easy to tell what she’s thinking. I know it’s her choice to not express emotion, but...sometimes I wish she would let her guard down for me.”

“I guess that makes two of us, then,” Yuqi said, twirling her fork in noodles. “You’d think a counselor who’s an empath would be easier for me to read.”

“Empath?”

“She’s quarter-Betazoid.”

Soyeon nodded. It wasn’t uncommon for an empathic race like Betazoids to be counselors. It explained why Minnie’s presence took her so aback; the feeling of someone knowing intuitively what she was feeling unnerved her a little bit, especially as a captain. As a leader, she was supposed to understand the emotions of her crewmates so she could properly assess complex situations, especially when lives were on the line.

“I guess that’s one good thing that comes from being friends with a half-Vulcan. Compared to her, reading other people is easy for me.”

“Then…” Yuqi trailed off, “What do you think about Minnie?”

“Minnie?” Soyeon asked, looking over at the two counselors. Minnie noticed Soyeon was looking, and waved, eyes in gentle crescents.

“Don’t worry about it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know it's been a while since i updated, but i promise i'll have another update out sooner rather than later! i've been watching more Trek lately, so i've had more inspiration to write this~
> 
> so some more meeting people and more introspection on soyeon and yuqi's relationships...i didn't want to cram any huge action into this chapter considering all the introductions we had, so expect some exciting things next chapter~~


End file.
